Congress must halt the Executive Branch’s censoring of Americans.

The Importance ‌of ​Free Speech

The First Amendment’s mandate​ that “Congress shall make no⁣ law ‍. ⁣. . abridging the freedom of ⁣speech” is a guarantee that, no matter how inconvenient to⁤ those temporarily holding high ⁣office, ‍the people have an absolute right to express ⁣their thoughts and opinions. Despite this constitutional​ requirement, over 200 years ago, ⁣President⁢ John Adams and the Federalists in Congress used the⁤ threat of war⁣ with France as a pretext to enact into law the Sedition Act of 1798, which made it a crime⁢ for Americans to “print, ⁤utter, or⁢ publish . . . any false, scandalous,‍ and malicious‌ writing” about the government.

The debate surrounding the‍ Sedition Act was about the nature of freedom of speech. One supporter of the law, Alexander Addison, believed that some ​opinions were so dangerous that it was ‍in​ the public interest to‍ suppress them, stating, “Truth has but one side: and listening to error and​ falsehood is indeed a strange way to discover truth.”

Opposing ​Views

An opponent, Thomas Cooper, presciently argued that the purpose of the Sedition Act was to empower one⁤ party to “suppress ⁤the opinions of those who differ‍ from them.” Unsurprisingly, all the defendants prosecuted under the Sedition Act would be Republicans.

Sound familiar?

On Independence Day ⁢this year,⁤ a federal ⁤judge ⁤ issued‌ a preliminary ⁤injunction restricting the Biden Administration from ​collaborating​ with social media companies ⁤to censor and suppress constitutionally protected⁢ speech. In his ⁣opinion, Judge Terry Doughty ​stated that the Biden Administration’s efforts to suppress opinions it ⁣opposes “arguably involves the most massive attack against free speech in the United States’ history.” It is difficult to disagree with Judge Doughty’s description.

For ⁤years, the Biden Administration demanded social media suppress​ and censor conservatives who dared question the origins of Covid, the effectiveness of masks and lockdowns, and election integrity, among other issues. The Biden Administration was so zealous ⁣in its enforcement of⁣ censorship, even parody content did not escape⁤ its anti-free speech campaign.

Government Overreach

And the Biden administration didn’t ask nicely. When then-White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki publicly called on social media companies to censor speech relating to Covid, she mentioned Biden’s support for a “robust anti-trust program,” all but threatening to break up tech giants if they failed to adopt the administration’s censorship policies. Later, the White House announced that it was ‌reviewing policies relating to whether social media should⁣ be held legally liable for spreading so-called misinformation. In other words, the Biden administration effectively told social media ⁣“Do our bidding, or else.”

The White‌ House was so​ aggressive that a Twitter representative‍ stated the site was ⁢“bombarded” with‍ censorship ⁢requests from the executive⁣ branch.‌ But that bombardment‌ was not really directed at Twitter ⁣— it was a monstrous attack on the free speech rights guaranteed to every American by the First⁢ Amendment.

In addition ‍to countless numbers of Americans, I was targeted by the censorship regime. ⁣ When I posted a video on YouTube to educate the public on the potentially ⁢harmful⁣ consequences of relying on ineffective cloth masks to prevent transmission of Covid, YouTube took my video down and ⁢suspended me for a week.

Americans are a free people​ and we do not ⁣take infringements upon our liberties lightly. The time has come for resistance and⁤ to reclaim our⁢ God-given right⁢ to free expression. Permit me, as‌ a member of ⁣the resistance, to present a solution that that restores and protects the First Amendment.

A Solution for Free Speech

I introduced legislation called the Free Speech Protection Act, which will prohibit federal employees and contractors from using their positions to censor and otherwise attack ⁤speech protected by the First Amendment. My legislation will impose penalties for those that violate this rule, as well as ​empower ‍private citizens to sue the ⁢government and executive‍ branch officials for violating their First Amendment rights. Additionally, the bill will mandate frequent publicly‌ accessible reports detailing the communications between an executive ​branch agency and media organizations, ensure​ that federal⁣ grant money is not used to label media organizations as sources of misinformation ⁢or disinformation, and ⁢terminates authorities that threaten free speech.

Under my Free​ Speech Protection Act,⁣ the government​ will no longer be able to cloak itself in secrecy to undermine the First Amendment rights of ⁢conservatives, libertarians, ‌liberals, socialists, and ‍all‌ others ‍who wish to ‍exercise their right⁢ to free speech and engage in public discourse.

My legislation will make it difficult to ⁢hide efforts to censor constitutionally protected speech.‌ Those officials who⁣ censor Americans are on notice: if you infringe upon First Amendment rights, under my​ bill, you⁢ will face severe penalties, such as ​potential debarment from employment by the United States, a civil penalty of no less than $10,000, and revocation of a security clearance. Any‌ administration ⁣employee who prizes his livelihood would not dare threaten free speech after my bill becomes law.

Looking back upon his defeat of John ‌Adams for the presidency, Thomas Jefferson wrote, the “revolution of 1800 . . . ⁤was a real revolution ⁢in the principles of our government⁢ as that of [17]76.” Jefferson’s victory was a vindication of the First Amendment as he allowed the Sedition Act to expire and ⁣pardoned those convicted ⁤for expressing ⁣their views.

Once again, the American people are called upon to ‍defend the founding principles ⁢over ​which our forebears fought a revolution. To protect free ‌speech, Congress must prohibit the ⁤government’s collusion with Big Tech and other media organizations. Congress must pass the⁤ Free Speech Protection Act.